Bascule-bridge.



T. BALL.

BASCULE BRIDGE. A APPLICATION FILED JUNE 8, 1911.

1,094,473. Patented 11111.28, 1914.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

m IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIL" Minimum T. BALL.

BASCULE BRIDGl-z.l APPLOATION FILED JUNE 8, 1911.

Patented A191128, 1914.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

T. BALL.

BASCULE BRIDGE* APPLIOATION FILEDl JUNI: a, 1911.

, Patented Apr. 28, 1914.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

T. BALL.

BASGULE BRIDGE.

APPLuATIoN FILED JUNI; s, 1911.

Patented Apr; 28; 1914.

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ifa/672257@ I provide simple, economical and eiiicient bastrussing, or river-arm, will be suspendedk tion to which they are adapted to be moved,

THEODOR BALL, OI

BASGULE To ali tv/wm t may concern Be it known that I, THEoDoR BALL, a citi- Zen of the United States, residing in Chi` cago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bascule-Bridges, ofv which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of l bridges known as bascule or lift bridges.

.The principal obj ect of thevinvention is to cule bridge. A

A further objectof the invention is to provide a bridge of the bascule or movable type having one or more leaves each comprising` a plurality of relatively7 movable portions, sections, or trussings so connected as to be in equilibrium in any posiand t0 enable said relatively movable portions, trussings or eiementsto be automati cally locked together when in lowered or closed position,-so as to form a strong cantaliver span for supportingthe live load on the river `arm of each leaf for a two leafv bridge,-and to be automatically discon-J; nected or unlocked the bridge is opened or raised, all in such a manner asto dispense with the use of any locking means separate or distinct from orin addition to. the elements which form the lcafcr bridge; or are essential parts or elements thereofg, and, furthermore to so construct, arrange and connect the relatively movable upper and lower portio-ns, sections or trussings that the dead weight of the lower section.

from the upper trussing by links or con-. necting means adapted to permanently conneet said'upper and lower sections or trnssings and permit them to be raised and lowi ered and automatically locked and unlocked. Other and further objects of the invention will appear from .an examination of the drawings, and the following description-and claims.

The invention consists in the features,` combinations and details of construction herein described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, 4Figure il is a view in side elevation of a leaf of al bridge constructed in accordancewith my invention Vand improvements, showing the relatively movable portions'loked together in lowered or. closed'fpositiom @Figla, a

BRIDGE..

Specification of Letters Patent. Pgiggmggd App, 2S LQMI Application filed June S, 1911.

Serial No. 631,936.

trussingsgirders or leaf members in the preferred form; Fig. 5, a detail view in side elevation of the parts shown in Fig. il; Fig. (nu plan view of a modification of thevinterlocking portions or members; Fig. 7, a detail view in side elevation of the parts shown in Fig. 6; F S: a view in side elevation of a leaf of a bridge constructed in accordance with my invention', and provided with a different form of operating mechanism from that shown in Figs. l and Q; Fig. 9, a plan view of the mechanism shown in Fig. 8, with a portion broken away, or omitted; and Fig. l0, a detail view in transe verse vertical section, taken on line l0, of Fig. 9 looking inthe direction of the arrow. and showing the construction of the rack and pinion mechanism shown in Fig. 9.

In Aconstructing 'a bridge in accordance with my invention and improvements, I provide one or more leaves a. lli/hen there are two leaves, they are', by preference, of 'identical construction.y and the leaf of a one leaf bridge may be of the same constructionas 1f 1t were to form one of the leaves of a two leaf bridge, in respect to those parts which constitutethis invention. it is. therefore believed to be unnecessary to describe or illustrate morethan one leaf of a given Atype or construction, and the description and illustration of a'l'eaf or of the construction and mode of operation and'thelockingI and unlocking of the relatively movable members, trussings or sections of a leaf of a given type apply in all respects toea'ch of-a plurality of leaves. i

Each leaf ais mounted upon a suitable saticnary supporter supports, such aspiers b and 0, provided with suitable "trusses, girders or sfide-frames ,Ahaving, 'by preference, an' upright e, a horizontal beam, chord or bottom member f, and one or more braces g and z,- 'and suitable transverse beams or iframe i members 'j (not shown) adapted to support a' stationary roadway'or flooring. -:.These truss'e girders or side able sect-ions, parts or main leaf portions` cach movably mounted on a stationary support and having trusses or girders of such dimensions and construction as to aord the required strength to enable said relatively 'movable sections, parts, leaf portions, or trussings -to withstand, the stresses and strains to which the leaf or bridge is subjected in supporting the load thereon, and

is constructed, by preference substantially` as follows: An upper movable main leaf portion, part or section i 1s provided, having side trusses or girders, each comprising,

by preference, a top chord z" and aloottomV chord j connected by suitable intermediate or web members 71 and -Z and gussets m, and

which trusses or girders are\connected by suitable transverse beams or members m which lnay be of any desired Aform and arrangement. The part z' is mounted upon a stationary support d, above described, by means of trunnio'ns or pivots n on opposite sides of the vbridge or' leaf. These trunnions or pivots are adaptedto pivotall'y support the part z' in posi-tion to extend above the piers and outward over the river pier when the leaf or bridge'is in lowered or closed position, and to permit it to swingV upward vand, downward 'to open -or closed' position as desired. The part z' is provided with a counter-weight u on its shoreward end or tail-piece. rlhe counter-weight. is adapted to counterbalance or maintain in equilibrium the connected relatively movable main leaf portions, parts or sections of the leaf or bridge, and may bein Athe form of a weighted framework or receptacle ofl any desired construction adapted to connect the side trusses or girders of the part A lower movable main leaf-portion, sectio-n or part `0 forms a river arm, and is provided with trusses or 'girders each having, by preference, a top chord p, a bottom chord q, and intermediate connecting or web members 1", s and t of suitable form and construction, said trusses or girders being lconnected, by means of transverse beams u and braces 'v This lower main leaf-portion or movable lsection 0 is adapted to support a floor or roadway between the trusses or girders,'and which floor or roadway may beof any desired form. f Y

The shoreward end of the lower main leaf-member or part o extends-beneath the riverward end of the upperleaf member or pivoted trussing e', and is pivotally mounted upon a suitable stationary support such-as the stationary trussing or/girders Z already described, by means of trunnions fw, in such positionv that thevrlver arm proJects river- 4wird from the river pier 'and beyond the riverward end of the upper trussing or movable part when said relatively movable upper and lower sections ortrussings are in closed or lowered position. l It is desirable to provide means whereby the relatively movable upper and lower sections or .partsmay be permanently con- -nected 1n such a manner as to be conclosed position, and in such a manner as to be freely. movable to raised -or open and unlocked position. In order to accomplish g5 this, the lowertrussing or member o, 'as already suggested,'is connected, at its shoreward end vwith a stationary support, such as the framework or trussing Zand pier c, by means of trunnions w on opposite sides of the leaf or bridge, and which are adapted to pivotally connect such lower' trussing with its stationary supportfso as to permit the trussing to swing upward and downward in a. vertical plane 'to open or closed posi- 95 tion. The upper trussing and lwer trussing or river arm are operatively connected by means o-f a pair of struts or links y i which are located on opposite' sides of the bridge'or leaf members, the lower end of 100 each linkl being pivotally c onnected `with the lou'er-tr'ussing by means of a pivot 2 and the upper end of each link being connected with the upper trussing by means of a `pivot 3. These' ,links or struts y vare 105 cach, by preference, located in the same Vertical plane with the corresponding side frames of the upper and lower trussings, and the side-frames of the lower trussing are each provided with a'space 4E for receiv- 110 ing the corresponding link y. These spaces, shown in Fig. 3, arev adapted. to permit the links to swing in said spaces from the position shown in Fig. l to the position shown inA Fig, 2, and back, as desired. The links on opposite sides of the leaf, and the corresponding side-frames, girders, lor trusses of the upper and lower trussings, respectively, are thus adapted to swing in the same vertical plane and to form a strong 126 well braced structure.

In order to provide means whereby the upper or shoreward trussing and the lower trussing or river arm are enabled to be automatically locked together, when in lowered i or extended position, in such relation as to form a strong c antaliver span for supporting the live load en the river arm, and whereby said upper and lower trussings are adapted to become automatically disconnect- 13G ed or unlocked at the points of interlocking engagement, as the bridge is opened or raised, the upper shoreward end or portion of the lower trussing and the outer or riverward end ofthe upper trussing are so constructfed that they moveinto and out of engagement with each other, and are provided at their points of engagement with interlocking portions or elements consisting, by preference, of a detentor pin .3 on each side, of the upper trussing, and a socket member o on` each side of the lower trussing in posi- `tion' to engage said pins or detentsrespectively so as to form a secure connection between the upper trussmg and lower trussmg adapted to support the live load upon the or embodying the herein described invention and improvements, may beof any desired, ordinary, known or suitable form, and is here shown in connection with the type of bridge illustrated in Figs. 1, to 7 inclusive, as comprising an anchored sti-ut or operating member comprising side arms 10 whictare connected at their lower ends with a suit able stationary support by means of trunnions or pivots 11, as shown in Figs. 1, 1a, Q and 3 and adapted to swing in a vertical plane, each of said side arms or strut meinbers 10 being provided with a rack 12. (See Figs. 1, 1a, and 3.5 Each upper trussing or shoreward leaf member of the bridge is urovided with a pinion 13 on each .side or the leaf in toothed engagement with the corresponding rack and supported and adapted to' be operated by means of a shaft 14 whichis jourualed in suitable bearings in members 15 of the side frames of the upper trussing. .finti-friction guiding rollers or wheels 16, supported by arms or brackets 17 are located on opposite sid-es of each toothed rack 12 in engagement with guiding flanges 18 on opposite sides of each rack, respectively, and the arms or brackets 17 are connected with thecorrespcnding pinion or its support, so as to keep the respective pinions in toothed engagement with the racks during the upward and downward movements of the pinions with the upper trussing or bridge member on which the pinions are mounted. The pinions are operated b v suitable trains of gears 19, indicated in Fig. 8, which trains of gears are operatively connected with the shaft or shafts 14, and with a suitable source of power such as motors "20, all of which are supported by the upper trussing, which is provided with asuitable platform for supporting the operating mechanism.

A modified forni of operating mechanism is shown in Figs. S and 9, in which operating struts or arms 21 are pivotally connected with 'the upper trussing comprising top chords t' and bottom chords by means etplvotsQQ mounted in 'suitable bearings and.

connecting the operating strut or arm with the upper trussing in suon a` manner as to permit the upper trussing and `the lower member 0 to swing upward and downward into and out of interlocking engagement with eachyother at points provided with de tents 5 and socket members (S on said upper and lower t-russings respectively, while said trussings are 'articulately connected bv means of links t/ or other similar or equivalent connecting and operating mechanisn'i. Racks Q3 are mounted upon the upper framework of the-lower trussingo, and are provided with lateral flanges Q4 alongside of said racks andextending with the latter longitudinally of the lower 'trussing or leaf member. Pinions' are mounted upon a shaft or shafts journaled in suitable bearings on the strut or struts Q1, and adapted to be operatively connected by means of suitable gearing 2'7 with a suitable source of power of any desired form, such. for instance, as the motors. Q0, already described. The strut or struts 21 are adapted to support a platform 28 on or forming apart of the strut or struts and on which the' motors or operating mechanism may be mounted.

The pinions are provided with guiding wheels 29 supported upon pivote'd arms or brackets 3() and in engageinent with the under sides of the guiding flanges Q4. 'Said pinions, tracks, racks, lianges and vguiding' wheels and brackets may be of simihrron# struction and arrangement to that. shown in Fig. 1, which' figure would serv-e to sufficiently illustrato the construction and arrangement of said parts, with the exceptirn of struts Q1. (See Fig. 10.)

.The word trussing as used in the speci-` fication and claims herein, .means trussing or girder, and the words trussing and girder7 are used interchangeably, each as descriptive of anvelement include-d within or covered bv the definition of thvn Voi her.

1. In a bascule bridge, the combination of a leaf comprising in its construction a plurality of relatively movable girders, a stationary support upon which said girders are pivotally mounted, links located between the riverxvard ends of said pivoted girders and said stationary support and pivotally connected with both. girders, for connecting the girders in permanently connected mov- 'able relation to; each other, said girdershav-A ing interlocking members integral therewith and movable automatically into and out-of interlocking engagement with each other, and means for moving the connected girders to raised and lowered positions, vto open and close the bridge.

2. Ina bascule bridge, the combination of a leaf comprising in its construction a' plurality of relatively movable girders, a stationary frame upon which said girders are pivotally mounted, links located between the riverward ends of said pivoted girders and said stationary frame and pivotally connected with both girders for connecting the girders in permanently connectedmovable relation to each other, each ofsaid girder-s having a locking member thereon and 1n tiXed relation thereto and movable automati between said upper trunnions and the riverward end of the upper girder and in supporting engagement with the lower girder,

connecting link mechanism' connected with the upper girder between theupper trunnions and the riverwardend ofthe upper girder, and connected with the lower girder between the lower trunnions and the riverward end of the lower girder, connecting the girders in movable relation to each other, a locking pin upon and in fixed relation to one of sai girders, a socket member upon the adjacent -girder in position to automatically enga'ge the correspondingllocking pin when the girders are in lowered position, means for supporting the girde'rs, and means for raising and lowering the girders to open and close the bridge.

et. In a bascule bridge, the combination of a leaf comprising in its construction a lower girder, an upper girder, a stationary frame for pivotally supporting said upper and lower girders, links located between the riverward en'ds'v of 'said pivoted girders. and said stationary frame 'and pivotally connected with both girders at points intermediate the stationary frame and the riverward ends of saidgirders, respectively for connecting said girders in permanently connected movable relation to each other, locking members upon and in fixed relation to 'the upper and lower girders respectively,

adapted to secure said girders togetherin position to form a continuous cantaliver arm `when in lowered position and permit the girders to move freely out of interlocking engagement in 'the direction of their raised positions, and means for raising and lowering the girders, to open and close the bridge.

In a bascule bridge, the combination of a leaf comprising in its construction lower girders, upper girders, a counter-weight supported by the upper girders, a stationary frame upon which both of said girders are pivotally supported', links located between' the riyerward ends ot4 said pivoted girders and said stationary frame and pivotally connected with both girders at points. intermediate the stationary frame and the riverward ends of said girders, respectively for connecting the girders in permanently connectedlmovable relation to each other, locking members upon and in fixed relation to the upper and lower girders respectively and movable into and out of interlocking engagement with each other, said locking members being adapted to secure the girders together in lowered position, to form a continuous cantaliver arm, and means for raising and lowering the upper and lower leaf members, to open and close the bridge. 'l

6. In a bascule bridge, the combination of a leaf comprising in its construction a lower girder, an upper girder, a stationary supporting frame provided' with upper trunnions in supporting engagement with the upper girder, lower' trunnions located between said upper trunnions and the riverward end of the upper girder and in supporting engagement with the lower girder, links located between the upper trunnions and the riverward end of the upper girder and pivotally connected with the upper girder vand having their lower ends pivotally connected with the lower girder intermediate the lower trunnions and the river- -ward end of the lower girder for connecting said girders in permanently connected `movable relation to each other, locking members uponand forming parts of the upper and lower 'girders respectively and adapted to engage and interlock with each other when the girder-s are in lowered position, to form a cantaliver arm, an operating strut pivot-ally connected with a suitable support, and rack and pinion mechanism connected with the pivoted operating strut and with the lea-f, for opening and closing the bridge.

THEODOR BALL. Witnesses: v

DAVID H. FLETpHnR, JENNIE L. FIsKE, 

